You Are My Hero
by nievki
Summary: Lara, Sam, Jonah and Reyes escaped their horrific ordeal in the Dragon's Triangle. This story will follow Sam's perspective on life after Yamatai. This may progress to become of a mature rating, but I haven't entirely decided where to go with it. Any ideas welcome! Lara x Sam
1. Chapter 1

"Huh" I mumbled as I slowly lifted my heavy head from my knees. I had fallen asleep beside her bed in the medical room aboard the Margane Kamotsu. The room was lit with only one small tea light, which was gradually burning out. I couldn't see her face and my heart began beating faster than ever before, a pain arose in my chest and I struggled for breath – that's when she shot up.

"Sam? SAM?! Are you okay?!" Lara gasped, frantically grabbing for my arms as I clung to my chair. Her fingers reached mine and she pulled me closer to her side. "Shh, Sam. Breathe, it's okay, I'm here"

She seemed so nonchalant and I felt pathetic for not being more like her. I rested my head against her shoulder, struggling to regain my breath. I could feel her smooth hair on my cheek and feel her heartbeat through her skin. She was safe. She was here. Once I had calmed down I tried to speak, but I couldn't fathom the words. My mouth was dry and my palms sweaty – I began to cry.

"Oh, Sam" Lara whispered, a certain anguish in her voice. She cupped my head in her palms and pulled me up to face her, "What have I done to you?" She looked deep into my eyes; she was all I could see through them, I looked about her face for what seemed like forever. A deep slash across her nose, cuts at the side of her mouth, on her forehead, under her eyes. Her eyes, they looked so tired and empty and as I noticed this, I adopted their emotion.

The cabin was so quiet. I could hear Lara's soft breathing and the hushed sound of her heart monitor in the corner of the dark room. I drifted away from the scene for a split second, though it felt like longer. My eyes hazed over and Lara just became a shape, a colour, a movement. I had never felt anything so painful as the consciousness my heart now revealed; Lara meant the world to me, she had been through so much anguish for me and she was so strong for it, why was I always the one she had to save? I felt her hands clutch me tighter and my eyes refocused.

"I-I'm sorry" I spluttered, fixing my eyes onto hers, "I just, I… was so worried you were gone." I started, there was so much I wanted to say but didn't know how. She noticed this, I'm sure. She took a sharp breath and her eyebrows lowered into a concerned glare. "This whole thing, it's been a nightmare, hasn't it? Every single time I wake… every time I wake up I need to check you're here. Because, because. I immerse myself in my dreams, my nightmares, whatever they are and… and when I wake up I can't tell if they're the true reality and, and you've really been taken from me. I don't think I could live in that reality, Lara" I lowered my head and moved away from her grasp. I couldn't bear to look at her. We stayed apart like this for a while, I could hear her sighing as if she were trying to muster up the right words to say, she seemed so desperate. "Why did you risk your life for me, Lara?"

"You're my best friend, Sam; I'd risk anything for you. It's my fault you were trapped in Yamatai. If you never followed me, if I never convinced you to go against your parents' word, you'd-" I leapt towards her bed and held her tightly in my arms. "Thank you." I breathed into her ear, choking up on a tear I was trying so greatly to hold in. She returned my embrace and tucked her arms under mine to hold my shoulders. After a while of just sitting there I pulled away, realising I hadn't even enquired as to how she was feeling.

"Lara, sweetie, how are you feeling?"

"I-I'm okay, I think." She hesitated, "I mean I feel better physically. How are you?"

"And mentally?" I asked, ignoring her question - this was about her. My voice sounded more anxious than I intended. I wanted to be strong for her but I was so afraid Yamatai had taken my best friend from me.

"I'll never forget the things I've seen, the things I've done. I had to get to you and save you but- those people, those monsters… I became one, didn't I?" I could see the fear in her eyes and the shaking of her lips and that's when I focused on them. I couldn't look away from them. The cut on the right corner of her lower lip was beginning to bruise a dark purple and before I realised what I was doing I reached out my hand to touch it. My thumb rested just below the cut and caressed the bruise gently; she shuddered lightly and muttered something about my hands being freezing. Her lips tightened and spread apart, revealing the first true smile I had seen from her in a long time, I smiled with her.

"You're not a monster, Lara. You saved me, and Reyes, and Jonah and you did all you could to save the others. You followed your instincts and we escaped – we'll be forever grateful for that" I moved my hand to cup her cheek and squeezed it gently, "You should try and get some sleep sweetie, I'll be here when you wake up" Lara held my wrist and rubbed it reassuringly.

"We should both get some sleep" she nodded. I took my hand away from her as she turned onto her side and lay facing me. I noticed that she winced in pain as she rested on her left hip, just below her worst injury where her side had been pierced. As I lowered my body down, I gave her a quick peck on the forehead and closed my eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

A knock on the door woke me that morning, I rose from Lara's bed gently and quietly tiptoed towards the door hoping not to wake her. "Who is it?" I whispered as I peered through the spy hole, it was Jonah.

"Hey Sam," he smiled "how is Little Bird?"

I opened the door and let him look in, "Still asleep" I smiled as I looked over to her – she was so peaceful. "You know Jonah, you can come in"

"That's okay, Sam. I'll leave you two to it" he beamed at me, Jonah never failed to look or be positive, "We were just going to have some breakfast so if Little Bird feels up to it when she wakes, you should come and join us". I smiled and nodded to him as he turned and padded down the hallway – his head almost hit the bars above him.

"Was that Jonah?" A faint voice called from behind me.

"Good morning, sweetie. Yes, it was. If you're feeling up to it he wants his _Little Bird _to go have breakfast with him, and I am starving!" I spoke lightly to her, as if nothing bad had ever happened and we weren't on our way back from a nightmare of an island. She looked like she hadn't slept well at all, dark bruises had formed under her eyes and she clutched her side – not looking very up to anything. But she had grinned at the emphasis of Jonah's nickname for her and slowly sat up.

"You have no idea how much I've missed proper food!" She seemed so excited that I couldn't turn her requests to join the others down, no matter how weary she looked. I walked towards her and perched myself on her bed. Wires going in and out of her skin connected her to monitors, I was unsure of how to set her free. "I'll be back in a minute, Lara. I just have to check how to get you out of here! Ha, look at this, I'm helping you escape this time" I laughed but then realised it wasn't really funny, I stopped, "I'm sorry." Lara just forced a laugh as I blushed and swiftly left the room.

We all ended up eating in Lara's cabin; the nurse told me she wasn't allowed to leave until she was completely stable. Jonah sat in my chair and held his hand on top of Lara's – it was at least twice the size and I guess it made her feel safe – Reyes stood at the other side of the bed and slowly sipped at her water while telling everyone about the phone call she just had to her daughter at home, and I settled myself on the foot of the bed. Suddenly my vision blurred and everything turned black but a floating figure that was now in front of me. It called out to me.

"_We waited so long, we must be sure"_

"_Samantha, you don't understand. I need you. We need you"_

I felt myself struggle and fall to the ground.

"SAM?!" a distant voice called out, followed by more voices, they sounded worried. Where was I? What was going on?


	3. Chapter 3

When I opened my eyes I was back in Lara's bed. I flipped over to face her bedside table and checked the clock. It had just been a dream, I thought, but I needed to check. Gently rolling over I reached out to touch Lara's face, she twitched and tried to shake me off as if I were a spider crawling up her cheek. "Lara?" I breathed out, her eyes lazily widening. She became quickly panicked and grabbed at my face, "Ouch, Lara, sweetie you're hurting me. What's wrong?"

"I-I-I wasn't quick enough. Y-You, he, Mathias got you. Oh, Sam I'm so sorry" a silent tear fell from her eye and rushed down her cheek, dripping onto the pillow below her. I released my face from her clutch and intertwined my fingers with hers. "Lara please, calm down. I'm here and you saved me" I pulled her closer and let her cry into my chest. I had never seen her so fragile before, Yamatai had torn her apart – I wanted so badly to fix her. A tingling sensation filled my heart, like nothing I had ever felt before. My head was rested on top of hers and I could smell the sweet fragrance of her hair right below my nose. I closed my eyes and all I saw was her. She was my best friend and oh, God, was she beautiful. This was the first time I had truly thought about her this way but it didn't feel strange, she was beautiful, that much was true. Even with all of her cuts, bruises and scars, she was wonderful. I traced my hand down her arm, feeling all of the dips where she had acquired injuries.

When she became silent I took a deep sigh, "You're beautiful, Lara"

"W-what?" She moved her head away from me and turned to look me in the eye. My heart was suddenly racing again and I began to feel flustered, which didn't often happen.

"I said… I think you are beautiful, Lara" I stuttered a bit, even I was unsure as to what exactly I meant by that. Lara was aesthetically pleasing but I felt something more than that for her, like I had felt in relationships before – only those feelings were for men.

"Even with all of these scars? You think I'm beautiful?" Lara questioned me.

"Yeah. I mean, you've always been beautiful and you could have pulled loads of guys if your head wasn't always stuck in books… But really Lara. You're amazing and your scars will fade" I tried to make it sound as least like I was flirting as possible, but deep down I think I wanted her to realise. After taking a deep breath I left my hand to rest on her hip.

"Sam," she started, placing her hand on top of mine around her waist, "I'm so glad you're here" she paused for a minute or so, as if she were about to say something more but the words didn't come out. Until finally she looked me in the eye, "We've known each other since the start of uni, right? And we're best friends?" I looked back at her and nodded, unsure of where she was going with this, "Would that be ruined if I were to kiss you?" She kept direct eye contact and I deeply admired her for that because I would have no chance if I were the one proposing this. Words were completely lost on me at this point so I just leaned towards her and placed my lips on hers.

"Not at all" I smiled and she moved in to kiss me back.

My fingers found their way back to her face, holding it in my palm being careful not to grab her too tightly. I brushed back her fringe and held it there, gripping with my fingertips as her kisses became more passionate. Abruptly, she stopped and pulled away. "Shit. I'm sorry Sam. I don't-"

"What's wrong?" I looked at her and waited, I wasn't disappointed she'd stopped, I was concerned.

"I just don't think we should do this, not now." She sighed and turned away from me, I reached out for her cheek.

"It's okay yano? A lot of shit has happened and we're all pretty fucked up about it. I'm here for you however you want me to be, L.C." a nickname Alex had given her, but I had hoped she would let out a smile from the memories. I could see it in her eyes, she was so very frail and her emotions were running high but she was afraid of telling me, she didn't want to look weak. "Just talk to me, sweetie, what are you thinking about?"

After a long pause, she replied "How I failed Roth, and Grim and Alex. Oh, poor Alex. Why did he waste his time on liking someone like me?" Her palms rushed up to meet her face and she wept into them. There are things I wanted to say but my words didn't seem to but of much help to her right now. Instead, I cuddled her up against me and held her tight until she fell asleep.

Unlike Lara, I found it more difficult to drift off – though admittedly I'd had more sleep. The tangle of her wires pressed up against my front as she breathed heavily into my neck where she rested, and I couldn't help but feel sad. Yes, Mathias was crazy and it wasn't my choice to be taken by him but it had caused so much lasting pain for her. People had died for her so she could save me, that was so insane to me and it didn't feel real. Why would anyone do that for me? "_Fucking hell, Croft. You're my hero_" I sighed into the darkness.


	4. Chapter 4

Since we had arrived back home, I had been instructed by the Margane Kamotsu's medical officer to keep an eye on Lara's progress and if anything got worse, I was to take her to St. Thomas' Hospital in Westminster where doctors had already been briefed of her condition. This meant that she was staying with me in my London apartment, and it was great to have her so close.

"Sam?" Lara called from the sofa, where she had spent most of her time since arriving.

"What is it, sweetie?" My voice was hoarse from the night before, I had drunk far too much in an attempt to prevent my reoccurring nightmares – I was tired of Lara having to save me from my sleep.

"I need your help in here, Nishi" Lara teased me from the other room; she knew I hated it when she called me that. With a deep sigh I dragged myself from my sheets and slouched to where she was laying.

"Why'd you have to call me that? Ugh" I teased back, pouting at Lara who just smiled smugly. I let out a short chuckle, "How may I be of service Miss Croft?" I asked, positioning my arm out as if were a butler to her.

"My bloody side is giving me gip again!" she let out an exasperated sigh, and though she was trying to look like she was joking around with me, her face crumpled up as she winced in pain. "Ow… God! Sam, could you take off my dressing and take a look? I hope it's not getting infected…" She trailed off and leant her head back into the cushion, closing her eyes as if that would numb the pain. I cracked my back and shook off some of the sleep, then situated myself at her side. Butterflies rushed to my stomach as I lifted up her khaki vest to reveal her hips; she had such a beautiful figure. "Be careful!" Lara gasped as she wriggled under my touch.

"Oh don't be such a baby. You're supposed to be a badass!" I laughed at her, but she just scowled. "Okay, alright, calm down honey. Where's the antiseptic at?" She reached her arm out from the side of the sofa and pointed to her bag in the corner of the lounge, leant up against the wall. It was still filthy from the trip – she had refused to touch it since we'd got back, bad memories I guess. After retrieving the first aid kit and patching her up – _"There you go, my little soldier" I poked her softly on the tip of her nose and she let out a humble smile – _we sat sprawled across my sofa, Lara let her head droop onto my shoulder. Her soft exhale blowing against my hair. We hadn't spoken of our expedition to Yamatai since we got back to London, yet right now it was all I could think about.

_Poor Lara. All these cuts and scars. She's always been so careful and now look at her, one trip has ruined her. Ugh, worst vacation ever! It was so insane how the island captured everyone's minds, I think we all went a bit insane from being there, no wonder Mathias was so fucked up. And Himiko turned out to be a massive bitch, her legend used to be my favourite until she messed up my wonderful Lara. My Lara? That sounds weird, stop it Sam._

As I left my trance of thought, I noticed mine and Lara's fingers had become intertwined and she was giving me that concerned look – it makes me feel like I'm a student that's gotten into trouble again. I remembered she had given me that look after my 20th birthday party ended in tears after I drank too much and did _way _too much stupid stuff.

"Are you okay?" she muttered, and though I had heard her, the words didn't register immediately. "Samantha Nishimura, answer me!" Lara shouted right in my face, I was completely taken aback.

"Woah. Chill out, Croft. And don't call me that, ugh" I growled back. "I'm fine! Do you want some dinner? I fancy a takeaway…" I spoke as I pulled my fingers from hers and walked to the kitchen to find the drawer in which I kept numerous takeaway menus. Although I wasn't facing her, I could feel her stare on my back; she knew I was keeping something from her. "Do you want food or not?" I questioned again, a slight annoyance in my tone – unintentional, of course.

"Sam, I-"

"Just drop it, okay, Lara?"

She let out a long sigh, "Fine. Let's order from that Chinese in the square" she slid back down into the sofa and I heard nothing more from her on the subject. I'd made her upset now and I hated that more than anything in the world.

_Goddamnit Sam you're such an idiot. Why can't you just tell her about the nightmares? About how you love her for what she's done? She's your best friend and you can't even speak to her. Stupid, stupid, stupid._

I'd been leaning over the open drawer for a while before I lifted my head up and sniffed a sad drip of snot back into my nose. A hand crept up to my shoulder and I turned to face Lara, who had her arms out to hold me. "I know you were drinking last night, Sam. And although that's not particularly out of the ordinary, I'd like to know why I wasn't dragged into it?" she smiled reassuringly while rubbing my back with her smooth palms. I took a sharp inhale, I'd never felt so helpless as I had done recently. Since we left that godforsaken island I'd be so on edge, and I think Lara noticed how I wasn't acting like my usual, confident self.

"I'm still having those nightmares and they make me so fucking scared. And… you're so strong. Look at you!" I paused for a moment, really looking at her, "you are perfect, Lara Croft." With nothing more to say I pulled her towards me, pecking her cheek and holding her close. We spent the remainder of the night curled up on the sofa watching some cheesy rom-com on TV and stuffing our faces with Chinese food.


	5. Chapter 5

My parents were due to be in London over the next few weeks and made me promise to meet up with them, as I hadn't really been in contact since I'd arrived back in the country. I was nervous, to say the least. My father had always been that strict sort of supportive parent, where they're so harsh you want to hate them but you know they have your best interests at heart. He'd supported me in my career choices so far, although constantly pushing me to be the crème de la crème, but the events that unfolded in Yamatai may soon change that view. Sure, what happened had been on the news all around the world - "LOST ISLAND FOUND: EXPEDITIONERS TAKEN HOSTAGE" was one of the more popular headlines – yet the press muddied the facts and neither of my parents had been fully explained of the goings on of that island and I'm not sure I wanted to be the one to tell them. What would they think, some stupid British girl leading their daughter into a trap full of madmen and murderers? Surely they wouldn't be as approving of my career as a documenter after they found out.

Though I was worried about seeing my parents, I was happy to notice Lara's wounds were healing better than they had been. The slash across her nose had scabbed up nicely and as far as I could tell, she had no more open wounds. I was happy to see that she was in considerably less pain, and she had returned to frantically reading, researching and writing notes in her journals. She'd taken to living in my room where recently bought second-hand books were piled on my side table; sheets of papers were sprawled across my bed; and she lay spread across my floor surrounded by blankets and cushions.

"You okay down there, sweetie?" I enquired as I set down a mug of freshly brewed English tea next to her. She was deep in thought, her eyebrows crumpled beneath her forehead and her signature concentration look spread about her face; I decided against interrupting her work with any more words and just sat on the edge of my bed looking down at her many diagrams. She seemed to be working on making sense of how the transferring of souls had been possible, though not progressing much. In the succeeding minutes of silence her forehead smoothed itself out and her arrangement of pencils were packed away, yet she stayed silent. It was around 8pm and she'd been engaged in her theories all day, her head was beginning to droop to the side and her breathing became cumbersome, until she gracefully fell asleep with her head leant up against my lap. I sat for a while running my fingers through her hair and soothing her cheekbones – nothing had ever made me feel as whole as something so simplistic as that. Of course, I had to snap out my perfect little bubble and soon enough I was far too tired to stay sat up. I rose lightly from my seat, lifting Lara's head and guiding it back to the duvet so to make sure she didn't bang herself against the bedframe, and left to change in the bathroom. When I returned to the bedroom, I found Lara had hauled herself up onto my bed and was peacefully resting in a tangle of sheets.

"_There is no chance I am sleeping on that springy sofa, Croft. You'll just have to deal with my ass in the same bed as you. Ha. Just like college days_" I muttered under my breath as I crawled into bed and tucked myself into the sheets. I took a quick glance over to Lara's face as she lay there, watching her body rise and fall softly as she respired, her eyes danced about beneath her lids. Though the lamp spread a dimness over one side of her face, I remember thinking she looked perfect, and with that thought I flicked off the light.

I was awoken by a distant clap of thunder, my heart soon picked up pace and I began hyperventilating as the memories of Yamatai flooded back into my mind. Trying to be as silent as possible, I crept out of the bed only for my legs to buckle beneath me with a dull thud; Lara shot up.

"What" she groaned while rubbing sleep from her eyes. It was likely she didn't even remember how she got into the bed and I was certain she didn't know I had been there with her, "Is that you Sam?"

Then came another clap of thunder, this time much closer. My heart was racing, it felt as though it was trying to break free of my chest, rip its way out. I managed to breathe out a quiet "yes" between gasps. I soon found my head propped up on Lara's thigh while she leaned over me, attempting to shelter me from the overwhelming fear struck upon me by the thunder. She grabbed at my sweaty palms and tried to reassure me.

"Shh. It's okay. I'm here. You're okay" it was almost like we were back on that island again, my eyes blanked out and all I could hear was Lara's comforting voice speaking the same words as before. I told myself _it is okay Sam, you idiot. It's only thunder, nothing bad, nothing scary. Lara's here anyway, you're safe dumbass _but her words and my thoughts were too late, I no longer had control over my breathing and fell from consciousness.

**I know these chapters are relatively short, that's due to workload from college (but also because I like to leave things with cliffhangers for a while) and I apologise. However I'm off tomorrow and so I should be writing some more! Thank you for reading and I hope you are enjoying my first fic so far :)**


	6. Chapter 6

I woke hazy eyed with a face pressed close up to mine; I couldn't make out who it belonged to at first. My heart was pounding and my throat was dry. _What just happened?_ There was an unfamiliar taste in my mouth and butterflies in my stomach, though I did not know the reason why. After a short while my eyes became accustomed to their surroundings and the face before me became clear, Lara, my hero, come to my rescue yet again. I took a deep breath and reached out for her face, resting my palm against her cheek, "I'm sorry" I whispered into the darkness. Her hands folded around my back and slowly lifted me so I was sitting upright, my back against the wooden bedframe.

"Don't apologise, just relax. Here, I got you some water" she handed some ice cold water, which I took a small swig of. The feeling of the cold glass against my sweaty palms was soothing.

"I just… I don't even know what happened. It was only fucking thunder. I'm so stupid" I sighed. She just gave me that sympathetic puppy eyed look; I could almost feel my heart melt a little bit. _Stop messing with my heart; it's been through enough tonight_. Lara situated herself beside me and rested her hand on my thigh, tucking her fingers in between my legs, making me shiver at the cold touch of her palm. We sat in silence for a long time, only to be broken by Lara clearing her throat.

"I thought I'd lost you then, Sam. You need to stop with this whole nearly dying and scaring the shit out of me thing" she laughed as if to reassure me, though I could hear the sincerity in her voice and the crackle in her throat at the mention of death. "Do you think we should look into some kind of therapy or-"

"No!" I cut in, speaking more violently than intended, but I was not up for that idea. "I don't need therapy, Lara. I need you. As long as I have you I'll be okay, won't I?" I could feel her stare on my face, and through the corner of my eye I noticed her eyebrows raise in shock.

"I'll always be here, you know that. But what makes you say you need me when you already have me?"

"Not like that, it's not the same." I shrugged and pulled away from her, climbing back under the sheets. "What happened on the ship home… I haven't got it out of my mind since. What did it mean to you?" I blurted out from beneath the protection of my duvet. I could feel the rush of heat to my cheeks and the dryness in my throat intensified as I waited for her response.

"I-I don't…" she hesitated and became silent for a while again, "I'm not sure what it meant, but you know I don't go round kissing any old person. You're special to me, Sam. I'd do anything for you". Though I couldn't see her expression, I sensed her turned into that vulnerable, scared girl again and it pained me that I had put her in this position.

"Anything?" I said as I peered out from under the sheets.

"Anything. Is there something you have in mind?" there was no hesitation in her reply, and this made me far more confident than it should have done.

"Kiss me." I demanded, not a crack in my throat or a twitch on my lips. Lara stared blankly at me from the bottom of the bed for a while, as if trying to work out how serious I was about this, but eventually complied with my request and crawled her way up the sheets. When she reached me I lifted my hands to hold her cheeks, and once again my heart started beating heavily, however this time it was out of excitement as opposed to fear. Our lips met in a clumsy affair and I felt Lara's curl up into a smile. She rested her forehead on mine for a while as she attempted to hold back a nervous giggle, and then pulled me back into a kiss. Her lower lip pressed between mine asking for entry, to which I opened my mouth only to bite down on her lip and pull away, she let out a small sigh and ran her hands through my hair, pulling me deeper into the kiss.

_Is she really into this? What are we even doing? What does this mean?_

There were so many questions bouncing around in my head that could not be answered right now, I wasn't pulling away from this if Lara wasn't, and so far she showed no signs of doing so. Was she really into it? Was she into me?

When our lips parted, Lara settled herself beside me under the sheets and lay there with her face buried into my neck. She kissed along my collar bone and begun to laugh.

"Is this what we are now, Sam?"

"I don't have a clue what we are" I paused and thought about it, I honestly hadn't a clue where this was going, "All I know is that I think you're the most wonderful person I've ever known. I don't know how you feel about me because you're so good at hiding your emotions, _whereas I just fluctuate between ecstatically happy or fainting all over the floor, _but I like you, Croft. Can I keep you?"

She wriggled her hands beneath the sheets, in search of my own. When she found them and our palms joined together, our fingers entwined, she looked me in the eyes.

"You'll always have me, even when you don't want to. I'm here to stay and you know it." She said while playing with my fingers, running her own along them and gently bending them back and forth, she seemed nervous about something. "I like you too, Sam. I think I have for a long time without really realising. It's easy to confuse love between best friends with something more, so I just shrugged it off. But as most things you want to forget about come back to bite you on the bum, this did, on that island. It's always been there, though. Why do you think I never brought any boys back to the house in _college_?"

I smiled as she mocked my use of the word college instead of university. I must have looked like a complete ass with a smile as wide as mine felt, but I couldn't hold it back. Lara made me so happy.

"I really should faint more often, shouldn't I?" I grinned at her and she let out a small chuckle. So now there was one less weight dragging me down, my biggest worry was how to deal with my parents in the upcoming days, though I was sure Lara could be of some help to me. She was my hero after all.


	7. Chapter 7

I'd asked for Lara to stay home the day I went to meet my parents. We were going for a meal at The Dorchester Hotel, where they would be staying. I wanted to speak to them alone because although I hated having to think about what I'd been through, I didn't want Lara to have to discuss it any more than she wanted or needed to. My father had rung me the night before last and told me dinner was scheduled for 2pm, so I had plenty of time to prepare myself that morning. I decided to wear a pencil skirt, a low-neck blouse and a relatively casual blazer, not wanting to look too business-like but also respectable enough for my dad not to make remarks about how much flesh I was showing. I felt a sense of embarrassment when I noticed how Lara was looking at me – it was as if I was completely alien to her.

"Who are you and what have you done with the real Sam?" she joked until noticing all the blood rushing to my cheeks, "Aww, I'm sorry! I've just never seen you look so… covered up." She carefully selected her words attempting to not embarrass me further.

"It's too much, isn't it? Ugh I hate my family. Why are they so posh and annoying" I flopped face down onto my bed, breathing into the freshly washed sheets. I'd been preparing everything in the apartment so it would be up to my parents' standards. I remembered when they had visited my dorm in college and my dad had said something along the lines of _"No one will ever want to marry a woman who can't manage to clean such a small room. You're nothing like your mother". _It had made me so angry that I wanted to punch him square in the face; I restrained myself knowing it would only make matters worse. After that I didn't want my parents' disapproval at my lack of ability to clean my apartment too, especially with everything else on my mind.

"You wanna grab some coffee before I dive into the fiery pits of hell?" I sighed, pushing myself off the bed sheets and straightening my blouse out. Lara looked me in the eye and smiled. She looked so calm and understanding, it helped me relax. I knew she'd had a strained relationship with her own parents, so we were kind of in the same boat.

"Sure, come on" she reached her hand out towards me; I threaded my fingers through hers and grabbed my keys from the desk in the corner of my room.

We headed downstairs and walked down the side street the apartment was on, there was a small coffee shop on the corner that I hadn't been to since before leaving for the expedition. It was a quaint place, with old wooden furniture, floral wallpaper and abstract art hanging from the walls in various shapes and sizes of frames. Lara led me over to a two-seater in the corner by the window; she'd always like to observe the space around her. It was a really beautiful day out, the sun was shining and there were no clouds to be seen. I was just thinking about how I was far too hot in the blazer I was wearing when I noticed she must have been melting in her woolly top.

"Aren't you boiling in that sweater?!" she looked up at me for a split second, but avoided eye contact. She started rubbing her arms and playing with the cotton of her top, she looked really uneasy. "What is it, sweetie?" I asked, dragging my chair closer to the table and reaching across to take her hand.

"I just don't wanna take it off, my scars, I'm ugly" she sighed. It made my heart sink to think that she didn't see herself the way I did. To me, her scars were an addition to her beauty. They were evidence of her strength and passion. I took both her hands into mine, "Look at me, Lara. You're amazing. You have a few scars because of how brave and badass you are! You should be proud of who you are and what you've done." I grinned at her, squeezing tightly at her hands. She smiled back at me, but worry still filled her eyes.

"You're good at the whole reassuring friend thing." She paused, her smile fading, "I just don't think I'm ready to reveal all of me to the world. It'll sound dumb but, I feel like showing my scars would be what it would be like to walk around in the nude. People would stare and wonder if I'm crazy or not…"

It seemed pretty accurate to me, actually, though it still made me sad that she had to feel that way. It was difficult enough for me to become accustomed to normal day to day life without the threat of being used as some supernatural vessel, and I didn't have constant visual reminders of my ordeal. Lara had been through so much more than I had and she'd done it all by herself, when the others were gone or she told them to stay for their safety. And she'd done it for me.

"I can't imagine how difficult it has been for you, the things you've seen and done," it was true, I couldn't even begin to put it into perspective, "but fuck what other people think of you and the way you look. If it makes you feel more comfortable to keep your scars hidden, that's okay. Just don't make yourself pass out from the heat of that sweater." I joked with her, hoping to lighten the mood. I'm not sure if it made her feel any better, but she smiled at me.

"Good timing." She muttered as we dropped the topic and the waitress walked over to our table. We ordered our drinks and sat there in silence waiting for them to arrive. I was watching Lara, and Lara was watching the world go by. She was so intently observing the passers-by, she'd always liked to play this game in her head when we'd been out anywhere she had the opportunity to just sit and wait where she would deduct what that person was doing or where they were going, from things such as their clothing or facial expression – she fancied herself a bit of a Sherlock. It made me happy to see her participating in such a regular thing; it gave me a sense of comfort and normality.

We'd spent about an hour in the coffee shop, but it was still far too early for me to go to the hotel yet, so we'd decided to go for a walk into Camden Market. I'd always loved that place so much; it just had such a good feeling about it. There were lots of handmade jewellery and food stalls – all I ever needed. We walked around for a while not talking, but holding hands.

"Hey Sam, I've just had an idea!" Lara suddenly burst out. I turned to look at her. She seemed really exited; the look on her face made it seem like she'd just discovered something amazing.

"What is it, sweetie?"

"Well, you know I said I didn't want to show my scars… I just realised I don't have to. I was watching something on YouTube ages ago about how some tattooed guy wanted a cover-up, so he paid some scientists to work on some special formula for hiding dark ink. I reckon if it can cover a bunch of tattoos, it can cover my scars" there was a tone to her voice that I hadn't heard since the last time she'd discovered some amazing artefact on a dig, before leaving for Yamatai. She was like an ecstatic six year old that had just walked into Disneyland.

"That's awesome! I take it they found the right formula then?" I giggled and she nodded enthusiastically. "Neat. Did they mass produce it?"

"I think so, though it might not be in all the shops. I'll have a look online when I get back to our apartment" she'd called it _our _apartment, why did that make me so happy? She gave me a toothy smile that gave me really bad butterflies. I loved it when she smiled like that, and it had been so long since she had.

* * *

These chapters are slowly getting longer!

Thank you for those who have given lovely reviews, I hope you're all enjoying reading this as much as I'm enjoying writing it :)


	8. Chapter 8

I scanned my oyster card through the machine and the electric gates opened. The escalators weren't working in Camden Station and I was in a rush to get to the hotel, so I had to run down the stairs trying not to trip up, which I wasn't likely to be successful at. Me and Lara had been walking round Camden for far too long and I had about 20 minutes to get to Marble Arch Station on Oxford Street, just down from The Dorchester. The service between Camden and Marble Arch usually took about 15-20 minutes because I had to change lines halfway through, so I was pushing it – my dad hated it when I was late.

When I arrived at the hotel's reception I was slightly flustered. I had run from the station in a bid to arrive few minutes early, but it didn't pay off. The restaurant was to the left of the reception, it looked pretty exclusive. I walked up to the man waiting at the entrance handing out menus and checking people in.

"Um, hi" I said, straightening out the shoulders of my blazer and shifting my skirt as it had ridden up from my little jog, "Can you tell me if Mr & Mrs Nishimura have arrived yet? I'm meeting them for dinner at two"

"Yes certainly, madam." He quickly scanned through a list of patrons, "They arrived a few minutes ago, I'll take you to their table" he gestured an arm towards the general direction they were seated in, and I followed him through the room. It was a big open space; each table had plenty of room around it for privacy. The walls were lined with old paintings in golden frames and there were pillars through the middle of the room, between which was the red carpet I was walking down. I felt totally out of place, this was like somewhere all the celebrities stayed, not me. As we approached I noticed my parents sat on a circular table in the back corner, one sat at either side making small talk.

"Ah, Samantha! Hello darling" my mother called out, rising from her seat to embrace me.

"Here you are, madam." The waiter nodded to me, then turned to my father "Would you like to order some drinks or starters, sir?"

"Yes, let's see…" he took a menu from the centre of the table without even acknowledging my arrival; I could see it was upsetting my mother. I supposed he was just in one of _those _moods today. "Let's get a bottle of the Château Le Boscq, please. Starters anyone?" I shook my head, not that he would have noticed. My mother said nothing, so he shooed the waiter away with the wine request only. "Do sit down, Samantha." _Ah, about time you acknowledged my existence._

"Hey dad. How you doing?" although I was saddened by his lack of care for me, it was probably a good idea I buttered him up with manners.

"How _are _you doing" he muttered, correcting my slight mistake. "I am rather well. And yourself?"

We made small talk until the wine was flowing, though my father still retained from any deep conversation. It was my mother who finally brought up the topic of Yamatai. I found it so difficult to even know where to start; I hadn't really had to explain it to anyone in that much detail. Me and Lara spoke about it sometimes but because we experienced it first hand, it wasn't too difficult to explain. By the end of my sloppy and emotional explanation of the expedition the wine was almost gone, and my food was cool. My parents' eyebrows couldn't have been raised any higher, their jaws had dropped and they didn't say anything for a long time. My dad sat there stroking his chin and occasionally rubbing his hand over his mouth in disbelief, trying to mull the story over until he understood.

"I've never had you down for much of a liar but this is most curious, Samantha. The existence of a _Sun Queen _seems highly unlikely, even more unlikely that a human could possibly be the death of her." He let out a small chuckle, "You are quite the drama queen!"

I was completely taken aback by his response to all of this. I had almost broken down from trying to hold in tears throughout my explanation and he thought I was lying?! I bit my tongue as I felt rage come over me and my cheeks begun to blush from my anger. I could see my mother was still in shock of the story and I couldn't determine whether she thought the same about it as my father did, but I was sure he would convince her that I was lying to them.

"I have video proof of some of it. It is pretty difficult to shoot when you've been kidnapped though. I can't believe you can laugh about this! Your only daughter… I got kidnapped! I could have died" my anger was bubbling up inside of me and I felt as if I were about to burst into a millions pieces. My hand begun shaking as my dad replied.

"But you didn't. Yamatai's discovery was certainly incredible but that island has messed with your head, Samantha. You're becoming irrational. I'm sure you're overreacting about it-"

"I've had enough. This is bullshit, dad!" I screamed at him, banging my clenched fist on the table as I rose from my seat. "Mum, it was nice to see you, have a lovely meal" I turned and began to walk away. The clatter of my cutlery falling from my plate and my shouting had caused a lot of heads to turn in my direction, but I was far too angry to care what people thought of me. I couldn't believe my own father didn't care that I could have died.

"Samantha Nishimura, don't walk away from me!" he yelled after me.

"Fuck you." I shouted back as I turned out of the restaurant and outside into the warm air. I knew I wasn't being irrational, I knew it was all true. Supernatural things were difficult for people to get their heads around but my dad was just a top class dick. I had never felt so angry in my life but I refused to cry in public, so I ran back towards the tube and caught a train back to the apartment.

Lara was nowhere to be seen when I arrived back. I checked the clock. 17:15. _Where are you Lara? I need you right now. _I soon realised thinking like that was selfish, she could have been out somewhere enjoying herself. She'd already saved me enough times; she deserved a bit of peace from my problems. I plodded over to the sofa and collapsed onto it. After my face impacted onto the white leather I couldn't hold back the tears. I cried and cried and cried, it felt like there would never be a time I stopped. Until I heard the front door creak open. I breathed in sharply, desperately trying to compose myself. _Stop it, Sam. You'll look so pathetic. Be strong. _I frantically wiped at my eyes, hoping to wipe off any runny makeup.

"That you, Lara?" I called out.

"You're home early aren't you? I've just been out to get some shopping. Oh! I found a pharmacy just down the road that sells that tattoo concealer stuff, so we can try it out in a bit if you want to help me?" her voice was slightly muffled through the walls, so I figured she wouldn't have heard me softly sniffing and wiping my final tears before she swung round the corner and into the lounge.

"Yeah, sure." I tried to smile at her, but it felt all too fake.

"So, how was the dreaded meal? As terrible as expected?" she laughed a little. _If only she knew._

"It was okay. It was good to see my mum, I guess" I didn't see the point in lying to her by pretending that I had a great time and it was an enjoyable event, she already knew it wouldn't have been like that but I wanted to recover from my outburst before I had another. I needed a break from tears. And a drink. "Shall we have a toast?"

"A toast to what?" Lara looked at me gone out. I smirked at her.

"Oh I don't know, family reunions and tattoo concealer!" now I felt like I was being irrational. I stumbled into the kitchen, feeling drunk already from the wine I'd had with my parents. The glasses were on the top shelf and I couldn't get a hold on them, so I decided to go for shot glasses instead. The alcohol drawer was more conveniently situated, and I reached in and grabbed for the Vodka and Sambuca. I lined up 4 shot glasses with vodka, and quickly knocked them back one after the other. Lara must have realised the meal had gone horribly wrong by now, but she wasn't sure what to do. I'd been on these kind of angry benders before and usually the best way to deal with it was just to leave me be. I hadn't drunk this much in so long and it was really hitting me quickly.

"You need to stop, Sam. You'll hurt yourself!" Lara called from across the room. I could tell she was panicked by my frenzy but even I didn't know how to stop myself now. I sunk to the floor of the kitchen and sat, leaning up against a cupboard door. "Oh, Sam. What happened?" Lara moved closer towards me, seating herself on the floor in front of me. I just cried. I couldn't hold it back. She leaned forwards and pulled me into her chest, patting my back and letting me cry it all out.


End file.
